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FRONT PAGE CONTRIBUTOR

The Members Behind the Purge of Conservatives

Yesterday, we noted that not only did House leadership select moderates to fill vacant spots on the top congressional committees, they made the unprecedented decision to banish conservatives already sitting on some important committees. All of the decisions related to committee assignments are decided by a Steering Committee. At present, the Steering Committee is comprised of 31 members, most of who are either members of leadership or pushed onto the committee by leadership. These are the men and women behind the decision to throw conservatives under the bus.

It’s important to note that Boehner gave himself 5 votes and Cantor 2 votes on the committee, so there are actually a total of 36 votes on each committee assignment decision. Here is the list of the committee members:

John Boehner Speaker

Eric Cantor Republican Leader

Kevin McCarthy Republican Whip

Peter Roskam Chief Deputy Whip

Cathy McMorris-Rodgers Republican Conference Chair

James Lankford Policy Chair

Lynn Jenkins Conference Vice-Chair

Virginia Foxx Conference Secretary

Greg Walden NRCC Chairman

Tom Cole NRCC Chairman (former)

Hal Rogers Chairman Appropriations Committee

Fred Upton Chairman Energy & Commerce Committee

Jeb Hensarling Chairman Financial Services

Pete Sessions Rules Committee

Dave Camp Chairman Ways & Means Committee

Paul Ryan Chairman Budget Committee

Lamar Smith Texas Representative

Doc Hastings Region I Representative

Tom Latham Region II Representative

John Shimkus Region III Representative

Mike Rogers Region IV Representative

Bill Shuster Region V Representative

Pat Tiberi Region VI Representative

Steve Scalise Region VII Representative

Lynn Westmoreland Region VIII Representative

Bob Goodlatte Region IX Representative

Ken Calvert Region X Representative

Jeff Miller Region XI Representative

Cynthia Lummis Small State Representative

Joe Heck 112th Class Representative

Richard Hudson 113th Class Representative

As you can see, more than half the votes are already selected by leadership. As such, conservatives see no purpose in running for the 11-12 regional representative spots because they will inevitably be outnumbered. Also, in past years, when conservatives tried to run for regional rep slots, leadership shifted around the regions to preclude them from getting on the committee.

It’s interesting to note that the representative from the class of 2010 is Joe Heck, one of the most liberal members. The representative for the incoming freshman class is…..Cantor’s altar boy, representative-elect Richard Hudson (NC-8).

The other peculiar thing is that Steve Scalise is on the committee. In past years, leadership has refused to put the RSC chairman on the committee, even though he commands the largest caucus in the House. Yet this year, Scalise, the incoming chairman, made his way onto the committee.

Folks, this is just the beginning, and these people need to hear from all of us. Please call these members and ask them how they feel about conservative Reps. Schweikert, Amash, and Huelskamp being thrown off their committees. Ask them if they were a part of the decision. Steve Scalise, as the incoming leader of conservatives, should be leading the charge on the committee against the purge. It would be interesting to get his take on yesterday’s developments.

This is just the opening salvo in a long war. House leaders have made it clear that they will punish conservatives for standing by their election promises. All conservatives in the House need to band together on this because anyone could be next.

Ultimately, there’s only one way to win this. We must overwhelm them with greater numbers in congressional primaries.